Democracy Now! Blog

Clarence Kailin was one of the last survivors of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade, a group of American volunteers who fought against fascism in the Spanish Civil War in the late 1930s. In one of his last public appearances, Kailin, a lifelong activist, told friends and supporters at his 95th birthday celebration this August, "We’ve got a lot of work to do."

Nomi Prins is a former investment banker turned journalist. She worked at Goldman Sachs and Bear Stearns. She is the author of several books; her latest, just out, is called It Takes a Pillage: Behind the Bonuses, Bailouts, and Backroom Deals from Washington to Wall Street. She spoke on the themes of the book at the Strand Bookstore in New York on September 29th.

World leaders are gathering in Pittsburgh for the G20 summit under the shadow of a police crackdown on protesters in the streets. Heavily-armed riot police are out in force all over the city, using tear gas, stun grenades, smoke canisters, and sound cannons, which direct extremely loud shrill sounds. This is believed to be the first time sound cannons have been publicly used in the United States. Democracy Now! producer Steve Martinez reports from the streets of Pittsburgh.

It has now been eight years since 9/11. The United States is still engaged in Iraq and is escalating its wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan with no end in site. Speaking at the Bluestockings Bookstore on the Lower East Side in New York, Arun Gupta, a founding Editor of The Indypendent, takes a critical look at the failures and future of the once massive anti-war movement.

Sandra Maria Esteves is one of the founders of the Nuyorican poetry movement. She performed her poem "Aguacero" at the 40th Anniversary celebration of the revolutionary community organizing group the Young Lords earlier this year.

Tim Robbins is the artistic director of the Actor’s Gang and an Academy-award winning actor, director, producer, and writer.
He won an Oscar for his role in “Mystic River” and is well-known for his roles in numerous films over the past two decades including “The Shawshank Redemption”, “The Player”, “Bull Durham”, and “Bob Roberts.” His best known directorial ventures include the award-winning “Cradle Will Rock” and “Dead Man Walking.”

The U.S. Supreme Court announced three historic 5-to-4 decisions this week. In the first, a core component of the Voting Rights Act was gutted, enabling Southern states to enact regressive voting laws that will likely disenfranchise the ever-growing number of voters of color.

Thirty years ago, a Catholic nun working in a poor neighborhood of New Orleans was asked if she would be a pen pal to a death-row prisoner. Sister Helen Prejean agreed, forever changing her life, as well as the debate on capital punishment in this country.

The 50th anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech is rapidly approaching, commemorating the historic Aug. 28, 1963, March on Washington. King’s words from that National Cathedral speech ring true today, as we face again the crisis of poverty and hunger.

By Amy Goodman with Denis Moynihan
One cyberactivist’s federal case wrapped up this week, and another’s is set to begin. While these two young men, Jeremy Hammond and Bradley Manning, are the two who were charged, it is the growing menace of government and corporate secrecy that should be on trial.

DN! In Depth

By Amy Goodman with Denis Moynihan — The corporate television newscasts spend more and more time covering the increasingly disruptive, costly and at times deadly weather. But they consistently fail to make the link between extreme weather and climate change.